Instead, the UNT Regents Professor and conductor of the North Texas Wind Symphony was on campus rehearsing for an upcoming performance by the ensemble -- which was nominated for their collective performance on the composition "Caribbean Berceuse" in the Best Classical Contemporary Composition category.

That level of dedication is a good indicator of why Corporon and the Wind Symphony were the first faculty member and student ensemble in UNT history to receive a Latin Grammy nomination.

Ultimately, the prize was awarded to the Los Angeles Philharmonic for its performance of "Fandango" by composer Arturo Márquez.

"I'm proud of how we played," Corporon says of the North Texas Wind Symphony's performance on "Caribbean Berceuse," which was composed by 16-time Grammy and Latin Grammy award-winning, Cuban-American saxophonist and clarinetist Paquito D'Rivera. It was recorded in 2023 at the Margot and Bill Winspear Performance Hall in the Murchison Performing Arts Center.

"Caribbean Berceuse" is featured on the Barcelona Clarinet Players' 2024 album "Panamericano." Corporon and the North Texas Wind Symphony shared the nomination with D'Rivera and the quartet, who also performed on the recording.

"Paquito is so well known, and he's been nominated before. That's probably a good reason why we were on the list this year" -- coupled with the "superior" musicianship of the Barcelona Clarinet Players, Corporon says. "They do things that no other players can do."

Corporon joined the UNT faculty in 1994 and also serves as director of the wind studies program. In a push to promote the program and its ensembles, he has recorded thousands of hours of music and released over 200 CDs of performances by its students over the years. Three of those recordings have landed on initial Grammy "long ballots" used to select the final five nominees. The ensemble's music also has aired on radio broadcasts internationally.

The 2024 Latin Grammy nomination was the latest on a considerable list of professional accolades Corporon has amassed during his career, which spans more than five decades.

A 2014 Bands of America Hall of Fame inductee, he received the Phi Beta Mu International Band Conductor of the Year Award and an Honorary Life Membership from the Texas Bandmasters Association. The UNT Student Government Association presented him with the Honor Professor Award for Teaching Excellence, Student Rapport and Scholarly Publications. In 2019, the College Band Directors National Association bestowed Corporon a Lifetime Achievement Award.

"The Latin Grammy nomination is one of the most important things that's ever happened for me, just because of the history I've had of chipping away and trying to promote and project the music we are passionate about," he says. "You hear all the time about overnight success. Well, if getting nominated is a success, it only took us 30 years."